Nowhere is the need for balance more apparent than when we speak about balancing relationships and work. I was excellent at being independent and had done a lot of work on myself, but it seemed that entering into a relationship that really mattered, unexpectedly turned my life upside down. Our ongoing work indicates that federal agencies, state and local governments, and the private sector are looking for guidance from the Office of Homeland Security on how to better integrate their missions and more effectively contribute to the overarching homeland security effort. State officials told us that they also seek additional clarity on how they can best participate in the planned national strategy for homeland security. The funds were to be used for a variety of homeland security needs including supporting first responders, defending against biological terrorism, securing U.S. The National Governors Association estimates fiscal year 2002 state budget shortfalls of between $40 billion and $50 billion, making it increasingly difficult for the states to take on expensive, new homeland security initiatives without federal assistance.
The association explained that most governors do not have a security clearance and, therefore, do not receive classified threat information, potentially impacting their ability to effectively use the National Guard and hampering their emergency preparedness capability. The planned national strategy should identify additional roles for state and local governments, but the National Governors Association made clear to us that governments oppose mandated participation and prefer broad guidelines or benchmarks. These broad efforts can be grouped into the following five categories: Congressional oversight of agencies to hold them accountable for demonstrating progress to heighten public awareness of the problem. Among these provisions are establishing local port security committees, comprised of a broad range of federal, state, and local governments as well as commercial representatives; requiring vulnerability assessments at major U.S. I will describe some of the services efforts to increase security at the nations ports of entry and between the ports, as well as to coordinate efforts with Canadian authorities to deter illegal entry into Canada or the United States.
Central leadership and coordination to ensure that federal systems were ready for the date change, to coordinate efforts primarily with the states, and to promote private-sector and foreign-government action. Border Security Ports of Entry The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) has a number of efforts underway designed to increase border security to prevent terrorists or other undesirable aliens from entering the United States. Congress is considering legislation to enhance seaport security. Legislation now before Congress would go further by making the use of biometrics a requirement in the proposed entry and exit system. Consequently, INS is developing an entry and exit system to create records for aliens arriving in the United States and match them with those aliens departure records. The Immigration and Naturalization Service Data Management Improvement Act of 2000 requires the attorney general to implement such a system at all airports and seaports by the end of 2003, at the 50 land border ports with the greatest numbers of arriving and departing aliens by the end of 2004, and at all ports by the end of 2005. The USA Patriot Act, passed in October 2001, instructs the attorney general and the secretary of state to focus on two new elements in designing an entry and exit systemthe development of tamper-resistant documents readable at ports of entry, and the utilization of biometric technology.
Coordination with Canada In December 2001, the United States and Canada signed a Smart Border Declaration calling for increased coordination to create a border that facilitates the free flow of people and commerce while maintaining homeland security. The other two security levels will contain increasingly heightened security measures to be taken if threat conditions escalate. According to National Industrial Transportation League officials, for example, transport companies express a willingness to adopt prudent security measures such as increased security checks in loading areas and security checks for carrier drivers. State and local governments believe that to function as partners in homeland security they need better access to threat information. Common definitions promote more effective agency and intergovernmental operations and permit more accurate monitoring of homeland security expenditures at all levels of government. Moreover, for fiscal year 2002, Congress appropriated $93.3 million to the Transportation Security Administration for port security assessment and improvements. Funding for Homeland Security Congress has also acted and provided significant homeland security funds. In order to establish a clear indication of how Coast Guard units and personnel should respond to various threat levels at seaports, the Coast Guard is developing three new maritime security levels.